Caving In
by Fer8girl
Summary: For Chiss Sith Sixfee'Tunder cave exploration on Hoth came naturally, after all, she grew up there. But having Lieutenant Pierce with her added an explosive element she was unprepared for. The swaggering Imperial had a way of making her question her loyalty to Malavai Quinn. Maybe it was about time to detonate this volatile situation and see where the debris fell. Rated T
1. Chapter 1

"Are you all right, my lord?"

Six frowned in confusion as she realized she was lying on her back. She remembered the explosion knocking her backwards before collapsing the tunnel, but everything else was hazy. The voice addressing her was deep and husky; before she'd thought Quinn was the only man she knew that could make "my lord" sound like an endearment. She opened her eyes, squinting at the face in front of her. In the dim glow of the cave walls she recognized the scarred face of Pierce, kneeling beside her. His brow was knitted with concern as he ran his hands over her scalp, his fingers threading through her thick black hair, then over her limbs. Just searching for injuries, Six told herself, as he reached under her to assist her to a sitting position.

"Too much baradium in those charges," he said gruffly, "Didn't expect them to react like that. Damn good explosion though." He grinned at the last part of his statement. Six shook her head, trying to clear it but also hiding a smile at his enthusiasm over demolition.

"A bit much for my liking," she said, "Need to get away faster next time."

It hadn't escaped her that Pierce's hand remained on her back. His grin had faded somewhat, becoming more intense as he focused on her face as best as he could in the near darkness. Even though her solid red eyes usually burned to the point of glowing, Six knew it was probably difficult to make out the refined features of her blue toned face.

"Glad to see you're in one piece, my lord," his voice got husky again, "Didn't mean to put you in harm's way." He stood, reaching for her hand and then pulling her up with him. She'd noticed Pierce's way of touching her was professional and reassuring, but he seemed reluctant to stop. He also had that way of calling her 'my lord' like it meant something more than a title, similar to an Imperial Captain she knew.

Six sighed internally, wondering, not for the first time, how wise it was having two such strong male personalities on her ship, especially since Pierce had started showing signs of being interested in her. She was curious if it was a genuine attraction, or if he was using her to get on Quinn's nerves. It seemed like Pierce made his advances more noticeable when the Captain was in the vicinity. Maybe she wasn't the only one who thought it was humorous to work Quinn into a fit of silent indignation, Six thought with a grin. But there were moments when she caught Pierce watching her with a dangerous intensity, like he was marking her as a target. Either way, she was going to have to nip it in the bud soon. Lately, she'd begun to feel like a choice piece of nerf meat thrown between two Kath hounds, and it was wearing thin.

Part of her admitted after Quinn's cool demeanor, Pierce's raw maleness had a certain appeal. The Lieutenant was a giant of a man, towering over both herself and Quinn, with broad shoulders and a swagger in his walk. Recently she'd found herself wondering about the texture of the scars on his cheek, and if his beard would feel rough on her skin. It hadn't helped that Quinn requested to stay on the ship as opposed to going to Hoth, the one planet in this galaxy that was as close to a home as she could remember. But she'd also seen Quinn's eyes flash when she'd said Pierce would accompany her, as opposed to Jaesa. She'd tried justifying her decision by telling herself that he was the newest member to her crew, she needed to see what he was capable of. Now she wondered if she'd done it to lash back at Quinn or just to have some time with Pierce by her side. This was one of those rare times where even she wasn't sure what her motivation was.

"We should get moving," Six kept her voice as cool as the cave they were currently using to test munitions, "That explosion might have made the walls less stable."

The charges going off had knocked out the lights they'd set up, and she had no clue what had happened to the light she'd had clipped to her belt. They were now forced to rely on the cave's natural bio-luminescence, which was only one step better than total darkness. Luckily, Six thought, better than human night vision was an advantage of being Chiss, she could navigate around the debris on the ground with ease. Pierce didn't seem to be faring as well; she'd heard him swear more than once as his boots caught on the rocks. Six realized if she didn't take action, he'd trip up and get injured with his heavy footedness. She just wasn't sure if her next maneuver would open any doors that would be better left shut.

"Allow me, Lieutenant," she maintained a brisk tone, as she unerringly reached for his left hand. He started at her touch, but didn't resist as Six peeled off the glove and placed his hand on her shoulder. "You'll need to be aware of my location if I'm to guide us out of here, and I know you can't feel much through those gloves. Now, step lightly and follow me. Can't have you knocking over every rock formation on the way out of here."

She hoped interjecting a note of levity would help defuse any awkwardness of the situation. But her pulse jumped as Pierce's large hand shifted and his fingertips stroked the side of her neck, before curling under the collar of her coat. He's just trying to keep his hand from freezing, Six told herself, but she wasn't so sure. She felt him tug slightly, as if gauging her proximity to him.

"Noted, my lord. Lead the way." Pierce's deep voice sounded right next to her ear, and she swore she could hear his usual smirk in his words.

Six started moving towards where she remembered the entrance was, keeping her steps steady, but swift. Having grown up exploring these caves she was attuned to their structure, and her instincts were telling her remaining for much longer would be dangerous. The low rumble in the walls let her know there had been some collapses, even if they hadn't occurred in the area she and Pierce were in. It'd seemed like good idea testing the munitions underground, the large cavern she remembered from her childhood offered enough space for the blast without drawing the attention of the roaming Republic forces or the local wildlife. She hadn't been prepared for someone adding a little extra oomph to the charges. Now it fell to her to lead them out of there before they were trapped.

"You seem very familiar with this cave, my lord," Pierce's usual rumble was quieter than normal, but close to her ear again. For his part, he was stepping as lightly as he could in his heavy cold weather armor, following her steady movement with ease. Six was surprised that such a large man could move so quietly, until she reminded herself that he was in Black Ops for all those years. Moving quietly was probably essential to his survival, and that of his men.

"One of the many I explored when I was younger, grew up at Dorn, remember?" Six admitted, referring to the fact that she'd lived at the base when her Chiss father was stationed there, "But exploration didn't usually involve blowing things up." she added dryly. She caught the chuckle from Pierce and he squeezed her shoulder.

"The idea was sound, my lord," he said, "The environment was controlled, no chance of enemy interference. It was the damn charges that backfired." His voice lowered to almost a growl. "When I get my hands on who tampered with them..." His hand gripped her shoulder almost painfully. Six reached up and tapped his hand to remind him where it laid and he let out a sound of surprise. "Sorry, my lord," he sounded chagrined, "Just seen too many good men fall because of misuse of munitions, always seemed a waste."

"I agree, Lieutenant, it is a waste," Six had seen more than one soldier sent to the infirmary, or the morgue, due to foolish acts around the volatile supplies that were stored at the base. "But, I'm sure whoever did it was just looking to shortcut some demolition work." Still not smart, but better than purposeful sabotage. Forcing herself to concentrate on their situation again, Six paused at a fork in their path; she was sure they should have started seeing daylight by now. She moved more urgently down the path, following familiar landmarks, and then let out a loud groan as she came to a sudden stop.


	2. Chapter 2

"Should I ask, my lord?" Pierce's voice was wry, but he didn't bump into her, even as Six stopped short. He slowly pulled his hand from her collar and folded his arms, glaring at the blockage in front of them.

"Well, this was where we came in," Six gestured with frustration at the blocked entrance. She could see spurts of daylight peeking through the loosely piled boulders of packed snow and ice. The rays of light improved visibility, she could see Pierce's rough-hewn features more clearly. But the precarious stacking meant if she tried to Force push the pile could fall back on her and Pierce, making that idea moot. Another rumble caused a tremor through the walls of the cave, letting her know this was where the cave was the most unstable and they'd better act quickly.

"Suggestions, Lieutenant?"

"Any other routes out of here, my lord?" Six shook her head.

"Not anymore, the first explosion effectively blocked the alternate exit when it brought down that other section of tunnel." Six continued to examine to boulders that blocked their way.

"What about those sabers you're always brandishing?" Pierce asked.

"Better used on more solid substances, not those that melt," Six pulled out her comm unit, "If the wall isn't too thick, maybe the base can pick up our signal." She moved carefully close to the blocked entrance. "This is Talon to Dorn Base, requesting assistance." She saw Pierce raise a skeptical eyebrow at her comm name, but it was a name guaranteed to attract attention if anyone was at the base communications console. She waited a moment before being rewarded with the reply chirp of her unit.

"Talon!" A hearty male voice came through on the comm. "Back on Hoth, who would have thought? Haven't seen you since they shipped you off to Ziost. Heard you're a 'Lord' now, pretty fancy." Six smiled as she recognized who had picked up her signal.

"Stow it, Henson" she said good-naturedly, "This is serious. I'm in Hawken's cave and there's a blockage at the east entrance, north is inaccessible as well. Any clue on an ETA for a removal crew?"

"You and that cave, Talon, knew it'd do you in one day," Six could heard the corporal's snicker over the comm, "I'll get Clipson to mobilize a crew, but it might be awhile." The cave chose that moment to rumble again, debris pattering around her feet.

"Put a rush on that, Corporal," Six tried to convey as much urgency as she could with her voice, "It's coming down fast, Talon out."

Six knew letting Henson go would be the clearest way for him to understand how serious their situation was, the bright chatter-box of a Corporal and she were old friends from when she lived here and she would love to catch up, but now was not the time. She looked over at Pierce; his expression had gone from skeptical to incredulous.

"And here I thought you were supposed to be a Sith," his tone was disbelieving, "Never heard one talk like that, my lord." Six looked up at the ceiling of the cave, folding her arms and tapping her foot in exasperation.

"I'm lots of things, Lieutenant," she pinned him with her red eyes, "I tend to let the situation dictate the role I assume. I knew anyone listening at the Dorn comm center would respond better to 'Talon' than 'Lord Sixfee'. But right now, becoming 'someone-not-trapped-in-a-cave' is top priority." Six went back over to the blocked entrance.

"You are full of surprises, aren't you, my lord?" Pierce said as he joined her by the entrance, "Why Talon?" Six chuckled at the unbidden memories.

"I was notorious for not fighting fair," she said, while laughing softly, "As one of the few females on post I used any advantage I could. 'Talon' became my comm name, because I was always using my claws, either physically or verbally." To her surprise the Lieutenant grinned.

"Talon, eh," he said thoughtfully, "I'll hand it to those Hoth boys, my lord, it's a good name for you."

Six gave him a rueful smile before examining some of the ice boulders near the bottom of the pile at the entrance, then an idea formed.

"Were you able to salvage any of those charges?" she asked. His look brightened, as he realized where her thoughts had headed.

"Might have a couple," he said slowly, "You thinking of blowing our way out?" At her nod, his eyes turned speculative, "Could work, I guess, just need to plant the charges deep enough to get the explosion to focus outward instead of in."

"Leave that to me," Six said, drawing her light saber, "Just tell me where they will need to go."

The perks of having a demolition expert on hand, Six thought, as she watched Pierce examine the boulders and assess where the charges would do the most good. After he did a thorough job, he signaled to her where to create holes in the ice. The cave rumbled again as she worked, reminding her they needed to get moving. They planted three charges, then traveled back to the fork in the path. Six understood they had to get enough distance between them and the blast to prevent injury, while being close enough to make a break for it afterward. Standing snug against the wall, she handed Pierce the detonator.

"The honor is yours, Lieutenant," she said, with a dark grin, "Any last requests?" She was surprised when a sly look crept over his face.

"Maybe a kiss for luck, my lord?"

A bold request, Six thought, but why not. She gave him a brisk nod and craned up to give him a light kiss on the lips. Pierce had something else in mind, she realized quickly, as his arms wrenched her to him and his mouth met hers. The kiss was fierce and hungry, catching her off guard, but igniting her natural passion and her arms wrapped around his neck. His tongue slid along her lips, demanding entrance, then surged inside when she parted them with a moan. No simple press of lips, this was the raw desire of a man denied something far too long and finally able to indulge himself; Six couldn't help but to respond to it.

Her eager reaction only seemed to fuel whatever had taken him over, she heard a growl as he clasped her tighter. His tongue warred with hers before he broke from the kiss to rake his teeth along her jawline to her throat. Six felt her head lean back as she gave herself over to the temporary insanity of the situation, her breath coming in gasps. Suddenly, the clattering of rocks at their feet reminded her of where they were, and she froze, feeling as though she had been dropped naked into a snowbank.

"We need to stop," her voice rasping, as she pushed reluctantly against the chest plate of Pierce's armor. But dislodging him was proving difficult, he seemed intent on his exploration of her skin with his mouth. "Lieutenant!" she let her voice snap and it seemed to have the desired effect. He backed up to look her in the eyes, giving her a bold grin while the flames in his eyes slowly banked.

"If that doesn't bring us luck, my lord, I don't know what will." his voice was husky as he smiled at her.

No apology, she noticed, but she wasn't surprised as she took in a deep breath and exhaled sharply. Shouldn't have enjoyed that so much, she told herself, feeling conflicted. She and Quinn were... well, her thoughts pulled up sharply, what were they? After the teasing and games they had played, to include an amazing night together, their relationship was still lacking definition. Now with Pierce in the picture, she felt the tables being turned on her. She recognized that he used the same tactics on her that she'd used while pursuing Quinn. Almost made her feel bad for the Captain, she thought, almost. She took another deep breath and focused her gaze on Pierce.

"I think it's time to get out of here, Lieutenant," she said, motioning to the detonator he still held with her head. His smile melted into the more common grim look she usually saw on his face, but his eyes were still intense as he looked at her.

"Hope this works, my lord." he said, positioning himself between her and the blast. The charges detonated with a resounding boom, and Six grinned as she saw the opening to the cave clear. She took off at a full sprint, barely registering that Pierce wasn't following.

"My lord!" she heard him shout, freezing just beyond the exit when she heard the panic in his voice. "Only two!"

She stood confused for a moment, then the meaning of his words sunk in; they'd set three charges. She scanned the remaining ice boulders, catching a flash out of the corner of her eye as the third charge exploded. She ducked down as fast as she could, covering her head with her arms. Getting low to the ground let most of the debris pass over her, but one determined chunk caught her in the side, knocking her over. She cried out as she heard a crunch, and her side flared in blinding pain. She tried gathering her focus as she lay on the snow gasping, but every breath felt like a knife plunged into her side. Not again, was the last thing she thought, as her vision started to fade and she heard heavy boots running towards her.


	3. Chapter 3

Why was it so bright in here? Six thought, squinting her eyes against the light, before she realized they were closed. She turned her head and felt a sharp pain as she inhaled. Instantly, she remembered the second set of charges, being caught in the blast and falling to the snow, where she was still lying. A slow inhale helped confirm her suspicions, at least one broken rib, maybe more. But since she was still breathing, her lung wasn't punctured. Even feeling foggy from the pain, she realized it wasn't as sharp as it had been when she went down. She also started to notice the squabbling voices of two men kneeling above her, even though she could only pick out sporadic words.

"... going through your head..."

"Her idea... said she knew... caves were stable..."

"... on your watch... happens to her... responsible..."

"Understo... Captain."

The last part along with the icy voice grabbed her attention; only one Captain she knew who sounded like that. Was Quinn here? she wondered as she forced herself to focus on what was being said.

"There was no need to test those old munitions," she could make out Quinn using what she had dubbed his "Imperial voice", the cold one he used when he wanted to distance himself from the situation. "There are plenty of supplies in the bunkers, why bother with expired goods?"

"She said it was irresponsible to leave the old inventory," that would be Pierce, she thought, he must have been agitated, his voice had a tense note she rarely heard, "I agreed with her. If the Empire won't let us dispose of it, then we should at least know what we were dealing with." Six could make out Quinn's groan and knew he was probably raking his fingers through his thick black hair in irritation.

"So who's blasted idea was it to take them into that cave for the tests?" Quinn ground out the question. Six knew it was time to speak up, she'd had enough of this petty arguing; between that and the bright surroundings, her head was starting to hurt.

"It was my idea," Six managed weakly, feeling both men start as they noticed she was coming to. She felt a cool ray of a med scan wash over her body, realizing Quinn had probably set it up to heal her enough to be moved to Dorn.

"My lord, don't move," Six opened her eyes and saw Quinn's concerned face over her. His normally aristocratic good looks were pinched with worry. "The scan indicated you've got three cracked ribs, but no internal bleeding." She winced as her gave her a kolto injection.

"How did you know where to find us?" she asked, the fact that he was even on the planet was surprising enough, much less outside the cave she and Pierce had been in.

"A Corporal Henson was up in arms at the base when I landed, trying organize a rescue party for some 'headstrong Chiss Sith, who didn't know enough to keep away from precarious ice caves'," Quinn gave her a smile, "Of course, I knew who he meant right away and convinced him to give me your coordinates, bringing along some medical supplies." Six gave him a weak smile in return.

"Well, nice of you to join us, Quinn," her voice still lacking strength, "What brings you to Hoth?" He had the good grace to look embarrassed, knowing she was referring to his earlier refusal to come to the planet.

"Actually, my lord, Darth Baras was wondering how the mission was going," he said, looking chagrined, "I thought I'd come and see if I could assist." So for Baras, not her, Six thought with disappointment.

"I've got the mission handled, Quinn," she said, wishing her voice didn't sound so strained, "Tell Baras to go suck on a blaster."

She got the fleeting satisfaction of seeing Quinn shocked and hearing Pierce's burst of laughter before her head started to hurt again. She tried lifting her arm to pull her tinted goggles over her eyes, but couldn't stifle a moan as her ribs protested the movement. She shut her eyes against the brightness and felt herself being lifted against a warm body.

"Stubborn woman," she could still hear aggravation in Quinn's voice, and knew that's who held her, "I told you not to move, those ribs are bad." She felt his hand move to her side, gently prodding, and another moan escaped her.

"Do you know what you're doing?" Six could hear Pierce's voice fuming, "She's in enough pain as is." She could feel Quinn stiffen at the Lieutenant's words. Uh oh, she thought, wishing she had more strength, this could get bad.

"You are dangerously close to insubordination, Lieutenant," Quinn's voice gave her chills, and coming from someone raised on Hoth, that said a lot, "I would suggest packing the speeder so we can transport her to Dorn. The med scans and injections can only do so much, she needs an infirmary."

"Yes sir, Captain." Pierce's voice was brusque, but it was clear he wasn't going to question the orders. Six felt her goggles being slid over her eyes and opened them to see Quinn looking down at her again.

"Baras didn't tell me to come here, my lord," he said, softly, "I really did come here to see if you needed help. I'm sorry I didn't come in the first place."

He eased her up further, and traced his fingers down her face before touching his lips to hers. The easy movement of his mouth caused warmth to pool in her chest; he kissed her like he could spend eternity doing so. His lips parted, coaxing hers to do the same, and he murmured against her mouth when she obliged. He held her more firmly against him, being careful of her injured ribs as he nibbled at her lips. A sigh escaped her as she reached up with the arm on her uninjured side to grasp around his neck, both supporting herself and pulling him to her. She didn't notice the sound of heavy boot steps until Pierce cleared his throat.

"Pulling rank, Captain?" the Lieutenant's voice was the epitome of restrained anger. Six looked up with a pang of guilt, but was puzzled when she saw Pierce glaring at Quinn instead of her.

"She's made her choice, Lieutenant," Quinn said, using his Imperial voice again as he looked up at Pierce, "I'll make sure she gets to Dorn safely, you can go on ahead." Six wasn't sure if her injuries were causing more confusion than usual, but she could tell something was going on.

"Someone had better explain," she intoned darkly, looking from one man to the other. To her surprise it was Pierce who spoke first.

"Sure, explain it to her, Captain," the Lieutenant scoffed. When Quinn didn't speak up, Pierce continued, "See the Captain here saw we were both angling for you, so he came up with a wager. We each got to steal one kiss: if you pushed one of us away, that man had to back off."

Despite her pain, Six's head whipped around to face Quinn. His eyes darted to her, looking guilty, then back to Pierce who had folded his arms as he stared down the Captain.

"See it all came down to getting a moment alone with you. You asking me to come with you to Hoth was a lucky break for me. But I think the Captain making his move while you were injured was a dirty play." Six slowly moved away from Quinn, and stood, feeling the rage build within her.

"A wager," she knew both men could hear the deep anger in her voice.

Pierce froze, most likely realizing he'd run his mouth too much. Quinn backed away, trying to distance himself from ground zero. On the plus side, Six thought, her rage was fueling her ability to use the Force to heal, she could feel her ribs repairing themselves, a process not much less painful than cracking them in the first place. But she was turning the pain back into rage, letting it feed itself. Even through her tinted goggles, she could see the red and black cloud of Dark Force energy start to wisp around her.

"My lord," Six heard the nervousness in Quinn's voice, and she turned her head to glare at him, "I meant no harm. My feelings are genuine; I was just hoping this might help you decide between us."

She looked over at Pierce to see what defense he would bring to the table, but he chose to remain silent. Very well, she thought, and in one movement she raised both arms, and both men were lifted by their throats.

"Let me make one thing clear," her voice carried across the frozen ground, as she watched each man slowly strangle, "I am not a game to be played. The next time either of you think you can manipulate me, remember this moment." She resisted the urge to slam them into each other, even though she thought it would have been poetic justice, opting instead to let them drop hard to the ground.

"Now that we've gotten that settled," she said, brushing her hands together, "I am heading back to Dorn. As far as I'm concerned, none of this ever happened. However, if you 'gentlemen' are still in a competing mood, last one at Dorn buys a round for me and any of my friends who happen to be in the cantina. That is, of course, if your throats aren't too tender to enjoy a stiff drink."

Six rubbed her side as she climbed on one of the three speeders sitting by the debris by the cave entrance, but didn't give the men a backward glance. She'd better pay a quick visit to the infirmary before hitting the cantina, she thought, just to make sure her ribs set correctly. Six hoped the visit wouldn't take too long, however, she was looking forward to meeting up with Henson and any other old friends who might still be around. After being blown up twice in one day, the idea of an evening spent with old friends and cold drinks, made her grin. She wondered which of her admirers would be paying for drinks tonight. Knowing those two, she thought, their pride wouldn't allow either would back down; she'd be seeing both in the cantina. But the speeder ride to Dorn would give her time to mull over the events of the day.

So Quinn and Pierce thought games involving her were amusing, she thought, too bad for them she didn't play fair. She knew by keeping her retaliation mild, at least by Sith standards, they wouldn't know what to expect from her. Hopefully, that alone would keep them on their toes, but she had other tricks if she needed to resort to them.

You like playing around, gentlemen, she thought as a devilish grin crossed her face, then game on.


End file.
